Briefs

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed suit against three data
mining firms accused of obtaining and selling consumers' financial and
bank account information under false pretenses.

The FTC cases, brought in three separate US district courts, target
Baltimore- based Information Search Inc.; Smart Data Systems in Staten
Island, New York; and Humble, Texas-based Discreet Data Systems.

The commission said all of the companies advertised the ability to
locate non- public financial information, including savings account
numbers, balances, mutual fund accounts and safe deposit box
locations, all for fees ranging from $100 to $600.

In court filings, the FTC said it set up sting operations using dummy
bank accounts created using the names of cooperating witnesses and
then called the companies posing as customers.

The sting operations stemmed from a crackdown the commission began
earlier this year on the practice, known as "pretexting." In January,
the FTC sent a letter to more than 200 Web sites offering financial
search services, warning against the practice of using forged
documents or making phony phone calls in order to obtain sensitive
consumer information from a financial institution or directly from the
consumer.

The commission warned that it would continue to monitor the other data
firms and their advertisements for signs of pretexting, which is
prohibited under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999. Violators of
could be fined up to $11,000 for each violation, as well as criminal
penalties, the FTC said.

For more information on the FTC action, check out:
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2001/04/pretext.htm